Smart, stylish and state of the art – the latest tech to deck out your home

By Campbell SimpsonJanuary 18, 2019

There’s no place like home, especially if it’s a smart home and CES 2019 proved that almost everything can and will be connected in our pads of the future. Some won’t break the bank either!

Viewing pleasure

The TVs of the very near future are getting bigger, have ultra-high resolution, respond to your voice commands and can even roll away out of sight!

Most of us have heard of 4K – the current pinnacle of display resolution. Well, now 8K is coming, doubling the number of horizontal pixels and creating another evolutionary leap in image quality. Considering a standard 4K movie is an estimated 100 gigabytes, you can only imagine how big an 8K movie will be to stream or download, which of course will require a fast connection.

More TVs, at all price points, are also including support for connected voice assistants, like Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Apple Homepod, allowing you to change channels and search for content just by talking. Great for when you can’t find the remote!

#CES2019 has become the place where TV manufacturers try to outdo each other with extreme displays that draw oohs and ahhs but there are plenty of promising TVs you can actually afford.https://t.co/pj3eTjxRre

We flagged this in an earlier blog but it’s worth another look. Who would’ve thought – a TV that actually rolls away out of sight when you’re not using it. LG made a huge splash with their first rollable TV, which is expected to hit the market later this year. They even use these new versions to create an amazing TV tunnel.

Our not-so-humble homes

Our humble home appliances and fixtures keep getting smarter, even the toilet.

A number of big name brands unveiled updated connected fridges, washing machines and ovens. Fridges can now write to-do lists, which can then be shared to all of your family’s devices, check the contents of your fridge remotely and ask for cooking tips. Your phone will even get a ping if you’ve left the door open. Many now come with voice assistant support for when your hands are full of dirty laundry or dishes.

Meantime, Kohler unveiled a voice-enabled throne at CES 2019. Using Amazon Alexa, you can tell it to raise or warm the lid and play music. Most importantly, you can tell if to flush afterwards.

Immersive gaming

Our PCs continue to keep powering up to handle the size and complexity of the latest games, and new accessories are hitting the market to create even more immersive experience.

Audeze will soon release its motion-aware headphones for first-person shooter fans. They detect and recreate the movements of your head. For example, you’ll be able to peek around a corner just by moving your head.

We hit our target of switching on 200 5G sites across Aus by the end of 2018. Experiencing the awesome gaming demos from @NETGEAR at #CES2019 I couldn't be more excited to get devices into our customers' hands so they can experience it on Australia's first #5G network! pic.twitter.com/UA1hvkJ3WI

Campbell is the External Editorial Lead at Telstra, and is responsible for Telstra Exchange's editorial strategy and publishing. In his role, Campbell finds interesting stories from within our business and shares them in new and innovative ways. He came to Telstra after working as a technology journalist for over a decade at websites like Gizmodo, CNET and PC World, and has a longtime love of tech and gadgets. When he's not writing, Campbell spends his downtime outdoors whenever possible, hiking, camping or mountain biking around New South Wales.

Smart specs

Google had an unsuccessful crack at this a few years ago, but smart glasses could be making a comeback with Vuzix now taking orders for its Blade AR glasses.

It projects a semi-transparent and rectangular screen on one of the lenses to mirror phone notifications and run apps. In the future, these types of glasses could enable facial recognition, send live feeds from their inbuilt cameras or run 3D simulation apps.

Campbell is the External Editorial Lead at Telstra, and is responsible for Telstra Exchange's editorial strategy and publishing. In his role, Campbell finds interesting stories from within our business and shares them in new and innovative ways. He came to Telstra after working as a technology journalist for over a decade at websites like Gizmodo, CNET and PC World, and has a longtime love of tech and gadgets. When he's not writing, Campbell spends his downtime outdoors whenever possible, hiking, camping or mountain biking around New South Wales.

CES 2019: What you could soon be driving, riding, even flying

By Campbell SimpsonJanuary 14, 2019

How we get around will very soon fundamentally change in a number of ways, and we’re not just talking on the road – it’s in the air and the water too. Your home and work are also set for further shake-ups as robotics technology continues to advance.

The bike will go from 0 to nearly 100 km/h in around 3.5 seconds, with 100 percent of the motor torque available instantly. Unlike regular motorbikes, there’s no clutch or gear shifting – it’s just twist and go – and the famous Harley road roar has been replaced by more of a “zoom” sound.

It also comes with a host of connected features and an app, giving you the ability to check your battery charge remotely and get an alert if someone’s tampering with your ride.

Flying taxis: closer than you might think

You couldn’t miss Bell Air Taxi’s hybrid-electric flying car at CES. Using six tilting ducted fans, it’s designed to take off and land vertically from a rooftop or launch pad.

Initially capable of carrying four passengers and a pilot, the plan is to eventually make them autonomous (self-driving).

The military aircraft manufacturer has partnered with Uber and plans to roll out these air taxis to cities by the “mid-2020s.”

Never leave home, even on the road

When it comes to the cars of the future, dashboards could be replaced by mega touch screens and remain connected to your home, even when you’re out and about.

We’ve all probably been in this situation: you get home and you’re hungry only to find you’re out of bread or that key ingredient. Samsung’s connected car concept at CES allows to you to check what you have at home via their smart fridge so you know whether you need to stop at the shops on the way home.

Meantime, Chinese EV start-up Byton has unveiled an electric car full of screens, including a huge 49-inch screen that spans the entire width of the windshield.

That’s just one of five touch screens, that can show maps, car telematics and entertainment, when in autonomous driving mode of course.

Smart boats making waves

A yacht launched at CES for the first time this year.

The 78-foot Adonis concept by Furrion comes with its own “virtual concierge” voice and facial recognition system, called Angel. As well as allowing you to control the vessel’s lights, blinds, media and climate, she can even deliver an order to the kitchen (because you’ll have your own chef on board, of course!), including reminding them of any dietary restrictions you may have.

Angel is so intuitive, she can even monitor your weight and skin moisture levels (time to hydrate, cool down and swim off some calories).

Robots providing assistance and comfort

There were more than 344 robotics exhibitors this year as a future where robot assistants are common continually comes closer to reality.

This year, they were showcasing assistants that lift, bake, shop, dance, play ping pong, and even help cure loneliness.

Lovot has developed what’s been described as an advanced Furby (remember those) with fur, wheels and flippers as well as sensors that detect touch, thermal cameras, and an impressive range of animated emotions.

Campbell is the External Editorial Lead at Telstra, and is responsible for Telstra Exchange's editorial strategy and publishing. In his role, Campbell finds interesting stories from within our business and shares them in new and innovative ways. He came to Telstra after working as a technology journalist for over a decade at websites like Gizmodo, CNET and PC World, and has a longtime love of tech and gadgets. When he's not writing, Campbell spends his downtime outdoors whenever possible, hiking, camping or mountain biking around New South Wales.

The weird, wacky and wonderful tech of CES 2019

By Campbell SimpsonJanuary 11, 2019

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At CES in Las Vegas every year, we always see a glimpse of the latest and greatest tech that will one day end up in our pockets and in our homes. There’s also some less conventional, more niche gadgets on show – and sometimes those are the most interesting ones!

CES 2019 is full of bleeding-edge tech for your home, your office and your backpack or purse. Some of it is for a very specific purpose, maybe too specific – think pet feeders with facial recognition, belts that measure your waistline, and beds that customise their firmness for your sleeping pattern each night.

Your smart home is getting even smarter, and stylish

It was definitely the kitchen and living room that seemed to be getting the most digital attention at this year’s CES. Samsung’s latest Family Hub fridge has a touchscreen tablet built into the door to look up recipes, share notes with family and even order groceries, and KitchenAid had a Google-connected smart display on show that can survive splashes from your exploding banana smoothie. If we had a favourite, though, it would be LG’s 4K OLED TV that rolls up out of the way when it’s not in use.

The other technological innovation that caught our attention – although it doesn’t look particularly high-tech – was Mui, which the gadget’s makers call a ‘Calm Design Device’ but we call a Wi-Fi connected block of wood. Hidden behind that block of wood is a screen that can display the weather, control your speakers or air conditioner, or respond to questions through Google.

The stand-out ‘smart’ home gadget from CES for us this year was the Foldimate, a device that looks like an oversized photocopier. It doesn’t print and collate your documents, though – it folds your shirts and undies. By all accounts it was a bit of a crumpled disaster last year, but the proof is in the video below.

Robots are getting even more helpful

Every man and his robotic dog had some kind of smart electronic assistant on display at CES 2019, each with a different purpose. Many robot manufacturers are touting the power of their machines’ artificial intelligence, and personal care was high on the agenda. Samsung’s Bot Care can take your vital signs and even dispense medication at the right time of day. The Bot Air looks like a garbage bin, but it’s actually a trundling air purifier.

Another robot with an even more therapeutic bent was the Lovot Groove X – just ignore the name – made to forge an emotional connection and “heal your heart” with friendly affectations. It might look like a Furby on steroids, but there’s plenty of studies to show that robots like this can become a genuine friend to those in need.

Robotics also includes autonomous vehicles, using their own cloud-connected smarts and sensors to navigate around our cities and suburbs. Or, as the case may be, around our skies – check out Bell Labs’ Nexus electric air taxi, which boasts nearly 250km of range and a top speed of nearly 250 kilometres per hour.

And, of course, there’s just the straight-up wacky tech of CES, robots and more. Feast your eyes on some of the weirdest gadgets we’ve ever seen on display below, as well as a few 5G prototypes and connected tech from our partners:

Campbell is the External Editorial Lead at Telstra, and is responsible for Telstra Exchange's editorial strategy and publishing. In his role, Campbell finds interesting stories from within our business and shares them in new and innovative ways. He came to Telstra after working as a technology journalist for over a decade at websites like Gizmodo, CNET and PC World, and has a longtime love of tech and gadgets. When he's not writing, Campbell spends his downtime outdoors whenever possible, hiking, camping or mountain biking around New South Wales.

How you can get first access to 5G devices

I am in Las Vegas for CES, the biggest consumer electronics show in the world, to ensure we are at the forefront of the latest tech for our customers.

5G is a major focus this year and the amount of connected gear on display here is proof our big 5G network rollout and testing is going to deliver major benefits to our customers.

2019 is when the 5G revolution becomes very real and I am excited to announce our customers will soon be at the forefront of 5G device technology, including exclusive access to 5G commercial devices, thanks to a series of partnerships with some of the world’s biggest brands.

Under the partnerships, the devices will be available exclusively through Telstra before any other Australian mobile operator when they are released in the first half of 2019.

Watch this space. These smartphones and devices are coming soon and we will provide further details closer to their release. Once on the market, these 5G-enabled devices will connect to Australia’s first 5G-ready network – our customers’ first opportunity to experience this revolutionary technology.

We are also continuing to hold discussions with other providers and I look forward to providing even more good news for our customers in the near future.

I am also pleased to report we have delivered on our commitment to roll out 200 5G enabled mobile sites across the nation by the end of last year. In fact we did even better, with 207 sites now online, including in every major city and some regional centres.

Telstra has been a world leader in the testing and development of 5G. We continue to work closely with numerous global manufacturing and industry partners to make this revolutionary technology real-world ready and these strategic relationships are now paying off directly for our customers.

These exclusive 5G device partnerships are the latest addition to a growing list of national and global 5G firsts, including:

Andy Penn became the CEO and Managing Director of Telstra,
Australia’s largest telecommunications company, on 1 May 2015. At
Telstra Andy is leading an ambitious change program transforming
Telstra to be positioned to compete in the radically changing technology
world of the future with 5G at its core.
Andy has had an extensive career spanning 40 years across 3 different
industries - telecommunications, financial services and shipping. He
joined Telstra in 2012 as Chief Financial Officer. In 2014 he took on the
additional responsibilities as Group Executive International.
Prior to Telstra, Andy spent 23 years with AXA Asia Pacific Holdings, part of the AXA Group, one of the world’s
largest insurance and investment groups. His time at AXA included the roles of Chief Executive Officer 2006-
2011, Chief Financial Officer 2000-2002, Chief Executive Asia and Chief Executive Australia and New Zealand.
At AXA, Andy was instrumental in building one of the most successful Asian businesses by an Australian
company that was sold to its parent in 2011 for more than A$10bn.
Other directorships/appointments:
Board Director of the Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA); Chairman of the Australian Government’s
Cyber Industry Advisory Panel, created to guide development of Australia’s 2020 Cyber Security Strategy;
Member of the Council of Trustees of the National Gallery of Victoria; Patron, on behalf of Telstra, of the
National and Torres Straights Islanders Arts Awards (NATSIAA); Life Governor of Very Special Kids and an
Ambassador for the Amy Gillet Foundation. He serves on the advisory boards of both The Big Issue Home
for Homes and JDRF.